EPILEPSY

Epilepsy is a name for a condition that causes brief disturbances in the normal electric function of the brain. These disturbances are called seizures. In someone who has epilepsy, the normal activity in the brain is interrupted by bursts of activity that are more intense than usual. These bursts may cause symptoms that no one else is aware of, like a strange feeling in the body, or they may be visible with shaking and loss of consciousness. Epilepsy can have many causes from head injuries, infection, tumor (pressure) and genetics. Sometimes, epilepsy cannot be controlled with medications and surgical methods are tried in order to control the seizures. When other methods and procedures have failed and epilepsy is debilitating to the patient, radiosurgery has been utilized with varying results.

Epilepsy Treatment Summary:

A review of the 8th International Leksell GammaKnife Society Meeting abstracts (Marseille, France, June 1997) resulted in several presentations on the treatment of epilepsy with Gamma Knife radiosurgery. The abstracts for the most part showed improvement in seizure control with many patients treated at different treating sites having eliminated or reduced seizures after radiosurgery. The studies may indicate a new, simple and safe treatment of epilepsy in selected patients. However, the role of radiosurgery still needs to be clarified. Further studies and longer term follow up are required before any definite results as to the efficacy of radiosurgery treatment for intractable epilepsy can be concluded.

Currently, multi-institutional trials are being conducted with Gamma Knife and epilepsy worldwide